Atlanta Braves: Best and Worst Performers from First Month
We’re now a month into the 2022 season so we’ll take a look at the top performers for the Atlanta Braves and those who underperformed.
From a team perspective, it was not a great first month of the season for the Atlanta Braves who have a 12-15 record and are six games back in the NL East.
And it’s not just the losses — it’s how they lost and who they lost to. Eight of their losses have come against the Reds, Nationals, Marlins, and Rangers.
All that aside, there were some great performances for the Braves through the first month.
Braves — Top Performers Through April
Kyle Wright: An easy choice here as Wright has been a pleasant surprise to start the year with a 1.74 ERA through 5 starts (31 innnings). The righty has 37 strikeouts and a WHIP of 0.97.
That’s including his one start in May that was the worst of his season so far, but he still lasted 7 innings while only giving up 3 earned runs.
Austin Riley: For those wondering if 2021 was a fluke for Riley, he answered that question quickly in 2022. In 26 games (100 at-bats), he’s slashing hitting .270 with a .360 OBP, .910 OPS, and 7 home runs.
Matt Olson: Coming to a new team in a new league with a big new contract, Olson didn’t let the pressure get to him and slashed .283/.395/.485 to start his career with the Braves.
Travis d’Arnaud: Not only does TDA do a great job calling games behind the plate for this pitching staff, but he’s been a hit machine early this season with 21 hits in just 18 games played, including 5 doubles and 2 home runs.
Max Fried: Even with the rough start to the season, Fried bounced back nicely and has a 3.00 ERA and 0.87 WHIP in 5 starts with 27 strikeouts and just ONE walk in 30 innings.
A.J. Minter: It’s gone a little under the radar how great Minter has been to start the season. He’s allowed 3 earned runs on 5 hits and 2 walks in 10.2 innings with 16 strikeouts. That’s a WHIP of just 0.66.
Kenley Jansen: He went 7-for-7 in save chances and after his first outing of the year, he hasn’t allowed a single run and has only given up 1 hit and 1 walk.
Braves — Worst Performers Through April
Charlie Morton: He gets a little bit of a pass considering he is coming off a major injury, but it’s a rough start with a 6.85 ERA and 1.73 WHIP in 23.2 innings with just 18 strikeouts and 14 walks.
Dansby Swanson, Adam Duvall, and Marcell Ozuna: Grouping all three of them together because they all were pretty bad. Ozuna got off to a hot start but really cooled off. Swanson has actually been better as of late. Outside of that San Diego series, Duvall has been rough throughout.
Here are the slashlines for all three players:
Ozuna — .224/.257/.383
Duvall — .191/.250/.287
Swanson — .233/.307/.367
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That’s the best and the worst through the first month of the season for the Atlanta Braves. Let me know who you think was the best and worst in the comments below.